1. Technical Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to digital devices and more specifically for a mechanism for various digital devices to offer the functionality and user interface of each other or, in other words, to emulate each other.
2. Background Art
Various emulation techniques are known in the art. For example, a functional simulator is a software model, which models the execution functionality of the emulated or simulated circuit. Microprocessor functional simulators have been used to facilitate the development of software to run on the target microprocessor, prior to the actual availability of the microprocessor. However, the functional model software is running on top of the simulating machine's native software system, including its operating system (OS) and basic input output system (BIOS). When the machine boots, it boots in its native mode, and the functional simulator is executed as an application.
As another example, the pcAnywhere product from Symantec Corporation allows one computer (the local computer) to present the user interface data currently being presented on another computer (the remote computer) on the same network. The user at the local computer can interact with software running on the remote computer just as though the software were running on the local computer, such as by viewing pictures, typing text, and activating graphical user interface (GUI) controls with the mouse. But, again, this emulator is executed as an application running on top of the local machine's native OS and BIOS.
Multi-boot technologies are also known in the art. For example, some Microsoft Windows machines are equipped with a multi-boot capability which enables the user to select, at boot time, which OS to boot, such as a choice between Windows or DOS. However, the underlying BIOS remains the same, and provides access to the same underlying hardware.
In none of these cases is the local machine able to actually boot as though it were the remote machine.